A Woman in a Man's Prison
by English Fitz or Percy
Summary: The Prison Break story with a madeup added. Please read and review! A childhood friend of Linc and Michael ends up in Fox River. The first woman to be held at Fox River. Please don't ask me how this is possible. I don't think it is, but it's my story. :]
1. Chapter 1: You Look Familiar

**Chapter One: You look familiar**

Emma Cortland stared out the window as the scenery rolled by. She looked around the bus and the guard caught her eye and glared at her. How did she get into this? The handcuffs were cold around her wrists and around her ankles. The guard came down the aisle of the bus, glaring at her and everyone else on it.

"Ten minutes!" the guard yelled. Ten minutes until they arrived at Fox River State Penitentiary, making Emma the first woman at the prison. She wouldn't be in gen. pop with everyone else. She was to be kept in a separate section of the prison for life; mainly because she was a woman in a man's prison and because she was a murderer.

The bus pulled up to Fox River and Emma was yanked up out of her seat into a standing position and herded out of the bus. All of the inmates in gen. pop were watching as the bus unloaded, jeering and yelling at the sight of a woman. The guards hollered at them to shut-up and Emma noticed one man who wasn't yelling.

"Michael?" she whispered to herself.

Emma was shoved through the administration process and given a briefing by a correctional officer who seemed to hate everyone. His name tag read "Bellick" and he seemed to like to hear himself talk. She was told that even though she had a life sentence was going to be put on Prison Industry, run by John Abruzzi. She was then shoved into her dark cell and waited for yard time.

The door to Emma's cell was opened and bright light from the hall flooded into the darkness, almost blinding Emma, who had been sleeping. She groggily sat up and groaned at the sight of Cpt Brad Bellick at the door.

"Time for PI Cortland." Bellick barked. They traversed the halls of Fox River and Emma was handed a blue jumpsuit which she pulled on over her prison uniform. She was then lead to an unfinished part of the prison.

"Abruzzi!" Bellick yelled, holding onto Emma's sleeve like she was some kind of child who wasn't trusted not to get into any mischief. A scruffy looking balding man carrying a clip board came wandering up to Bellick.

"Yeah, boss?"

"Got another one for you." Bellick ordered, as if there was no negotiation.

"Don't need another one." Abruzzi argued.

"Well you're getting another one." Bellick snarled and shoved Emma forward. "Life sentence. Automatic PI."

Abruzzi sighed and glared at Bellick then looked at Emma. He then nodded at Bellick and Bellick turned and left. Abruzzi looked up Emma up and down.

"This is a men's prison." he said.

"Don't you think I know that?" Emma said. "Its maximum security."

"Ohh, one of those eh?"

"Just give me a job."

"Go over there and get a roller and some paint." Abruzzi said. "Then you're going to go over and paint by Scofield. Know who that is?" Abruzzi didn't wait for an answer, he pointed out Michael who was talking to someone. "When you get over there, tell him to get back to work." he scoffed and left Emma standing alone.

She grabbed and roller and paint from where Abruzzi had said and then made her way over to Michael. "Is it really Michael?" she thought. She put her bucket of paint down about three feet from Michael and it hit the ground with a loud noise, making Michael turn and look at her.

He looked confused at first and then he smiled. "Haven't seen you in a while." he said.


	2. Chapter 2: Two Setups

**Chapter Two: Two Set-ups**

"You and Linc?" Michael asked then he sighed.

Emma smiled. "Michael? Haven't seen you in ten years."

Michael shook his head then glanced over his shoulder as Abruzzi glared at him. Emma studied him; he'd changed, but just a bit. He was still that good looking boy she'd grown up with, though. Having grown up with Michael and Lincoln, she felt as though they were her brothers. They'd met when Emma was eight years old. Not too long after, their mother died and their father had already left. That was when she started feeling more like a sister than a friend.

"Not the best reunion spot though." Emma said and Michael nodded; then something struck her. "Me **and** Linc?"

"If I tell you, you'll want in."

"In?"

"Cortland! Scofield!" Bellick hollered. "Get back to work!"

Michael began painting again. He was thinking. Emma remembered that look. "Ten years." she thought. "Has it really been that long?"

"Michael?" Emma said and he looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "In?" A man who looked Mexican seemed to have over heard them and was watching Emma. She gave up and turned the conversation back to Lincoln. "I don't live in a cave Michael. I know what the story is with Linc." Michael kept painting. "He didn't do it."

"I never said he did." Michael said, not looking at Emma, but looking over at the Mexican. "And I heard about you."

"How?"

"Rumours fly. We have nothing better to do." Michael said and smiled.

"Ok, wise guy, what did I do?"

"I told you, its just rumours." Michael said, sounding annoyed.

"PI's over!" Bellick yelled and the workers began gathering up brushes and rollers and paint buckets and headed for the door. That was when Emma spotted Lincoln Burrows. She casually made her way over to him and walked next to him.

"Hey, Linc."

He looked at her then he did a double take. The look on his face was pure confusion. "This is getting crazy. Me, you and Mike." he said then shook his head. "How'd you get in here?"

"I'll tell you the same thing I told Michael. It's maximum security."

"No, what the hell did you do?"

"Same thing as you, nothing." Emma said. When Lincoln looked at her like he didn't believe her, she continued. "I got involved with the mafia."

"There's a mafia in Illinois?" Lincoln asked.

"I don't know, but there's one in New York City."

Lincoln shook his head.

"I got messed up in them somehow. When I first met Jacob he seemed like an okay guy. It wasn't too long after me and you went our separate ways. I lost a whole ton of money because my company went under. Then when I met Jacob he seemed like a beacon of hope." Emma explained. "He helped me get back on my feet. Then he told me to do a favour for him. I told him no and he got pissed. Followed me everywhere. 'I did a favour for you, now it's your turn.' Eventually he got fed up with me and killed himself. His guys had a story ready. Apparently he pissed me off and I killed him."

"Didn't you call me about some Jacob guy?" Lincoln asked.

"Yes, but you never picked up your phone."


	3. Chapter 3: She loves me, she loves me no

I just realized how long I have left it. I plan to start it up again. Now, this is going to seem really sappy, but bear with me. I'll get back to story once I get this out of the way.

--

**Chapter Three: She loves me, She loves me not**

"Oh." Lincoln said, suddenly with a guilty look.

Emma knew what was coming. She'd known him so long. He was going to start apologizing. "Don't worry about it. Its ok." she said before he apologize.

"'Its ok'? Emma, things are definitely not ok. You're in prison for god sakes!" Lincoln shouted. Bellick began to make his way through the wandering crowd of inmates towards him.

"Linc, you seem to have forgotten, I **can** take care of myself." Emma said, looking at him. Her heart fluttered in her chest. As much as she was a sister to him and Michael, she and Linc had dated in high school. It was kind of a funny story when she thought about it.

At first, she really only liked Michael. She had thought Lincoln was kind of annoying. After their mother had died, Lincoln dropped out of high school to look after Michael. Emma would come over to see Michael a lot and was almost always there. It was so much better than her house down the street, where parents were always fighting, and her dad was always drinking and throwing bottles at her.

She stayed in high school and spent a lot of time at Michael's house doing homework with him, while Lincoln, who was only two years older than Michael, one older than Emma, watched.

Emma showed up one day after school and Michael wasn't home. Lincoln told her that he was at his girlfriend's house. Lincoln offered to her to stay for a bit because he knew she didn't want to go home. She hung out with Lincoln that night and as she was leaving, he asked her for a date, to which she accepted.

Lincoln fell in love with her after that, and he grew on her. Of all the stories you hear of people falling in love in high school, Emma's was true. He truly fell in love with her and she fell in love with him.

Emma stayed in high school and graduated. She got accepted to a university in New York City and knowing Lincoln would never come because he wanted to keep an eye on Michael, she left without saying a word. She regretted the decision ever since.

When she got mixed up with Jacob and his friends, she thought of the one person who would pull her out of trouble no matter what, Lincoln. But he didn't answer the phone. He saw her name on the call display and ignored it. She broke his heart when she left. He still loved her and wanted everything to do with her, but could bring himself to pick up. Emma felt the same way.

--

"Lincoln? Earth to Linc."

Lincoln snapped out of his flashback and looked at Emma. This was too much for him. He learned his lesson the first time. He was not going to let himself fall for her again. … But he loved her.

"I asked you a question, Linc." she said, looking at him sternly.

"You did?"

"Yeah. I asked what Michael meant when he said 'If I tell you, you'll want in.'"

"Oh. That." Lincoln said, the guilty look back. He looked at her, looking into her blue eyes, trying to decide whether or not to lie to her.


	4. Chapter 4: A Bit of Compassion

Alrighty. I would like to take this moment to address some reviews that were in my e-mail inbox when I got home from work tonight. These were all written by kendrat199.

Yes, I know Sucre is Puerto Rican. I wrote that he **looked** Mexican. Not that he **was**.

I know Veronica was childhood friend of Linc and Michael's as well. No, Emma does not take her place. Veronica shows up a bit later.

This is a bit of a spoiler, but no, Emma does not die in the escape.

I haven't been able to write much as I have been busy. I will try harder to keep this up. This means that I will continue to write it, but it may be months between chapters. If this happens, don't despair! Just write a review asking me to update if you're getting desperate for a new chappie, and I will write one. )

Now back to writing. This chappie begins with a flashback, so please do not panic. )

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**Chapter 4: A Bit of Compassion**

_Nine Years Ago_

It wasn't until the police cars finally pulled away from the house after 3 days, with the lights flashing, and Jeb's maniacal laughter faded into the distance that it hit her. Her mother, Ellen, was dead. And her father, Jeb, had killed her.

The police arrived three days ago, when Emma came home from highschool to find her mother on the floor of the kitchen in a pool of blood with the hammer embeded in her skull. Her scream alerted the neighbours who rushed over to find her sobbing so hard so couldn't talk. The neighbours had phoned the police and they arrived within minutes. Jeb came home 3 days after the police arrived. He saw the police cruisers and the crime tape, ran into the house, and began and very detailed confession which ended in a fit of maniacal laughter. Emma just couldn't understand it. Thepolice had question upon question about where she would go, and Emma insisted she could go where she wanted as she was 18. A special team came and took her mother's body at around 5 in the evening on the third day, and the police left shortly after with the lights flashing and Jeb still laughing like a lunatic in the back seat.

Once the cops turned off the street and she could no longer hear Jeb laughing, it finally hit her. Emma dropped to her knees on the porch and began to sob. She sobbed so hard her whole body shook and she couldn't bring herself to get up and go back inside for what seemed like 2 hours. Darkness fell, and she stopped crying. Emma stood up, and as hard as it was, went back in the house.

She went to her room, grabbed the duffel bag out from under her bed, and shoved all her clothes (which wasn't much, having Jeb for a father) into the bag along with her toothbrush, hairbrush, and anything else she felt she would need. She grabbed her wallet, and the keys to her red 1965 Ford pickup truck and left the room. She walked through the house, avoiding the kitchen, making sure she had everything she would want.



With a sigh, Emma left the house and threw her duffel bag into the bed of her pickup and realized she forgot something. She ran back into the house, back to her room and searched through every drawer in her desk until she found it. The strip of pictures from the photobooth. Every picture on the strip was her and Linc. She shoved it in her pocket and left the house, not even bothering to lock the door. She wasn't coming back. Mom wasn't around to come back. Lord help him if Jeb came back. She had no brothers or sisters. The house was officially abandonned. She unlocked her truck, got in, and rolled down the windows.

Emma sat in the truck for about half an hour, looking at the house she grew up in. Then, with fresh tears forming, she put the keys in the ignition, started the truck, and pulled out of the driveway and headed for the only house she knew would let her stay; Lincoln and Michael's.

_Present_

Lincoln sighed, looking at Emma. She looked so curious, and he wanted to tell her so badly. To take her with him. "Michael is going to hate me for this.." he mumbled.

Emma groaned. "For what?"

"This." He said. Then he sighed again. "Ok, I'll tell you everything next time we have PI. But you can't tell **anyone** I told you anything. You hear me? You can't tell **anyone**. Then wait until Michael comes and talks to you. He'll give you the final details."

"Wha-?"

"CORTLAND! BURROWS! GET A MOVE ON!" Bellick hollered and Lincoln shot an apologetic look at her as he darted for guard waiting to escort him back. Which meant Emma got the pleasure of having Bellick escort her back.

Emma felt a pang in her chest as the other guard escorted Linc out of sight. Bellick roughly grabbed her sleeve and turned her around. He snapped some handcuffs on her hands, and pulled her along by the chain between them. When they got to her cell, he shoved her in and as usual, she stuck her hands out of the hole in the door, and he took the cuffs off. Bellick roughly shoved her hands back in, the slammed the little door over the hole shut. He didn't even turn on her light.

Emma felt her way to her bed, and lay down. In the darkness, all her worst memories came flooding back. Unaware of what time it was, she cried herself to sleep. She woke up when the guard pushed her food through the little door. Emma took it from him, put it on the floor, and lay back down on the bed, and was grateful when he turned on the light for her. She could hear him muttering to himself about why in the world would Bellick leave it off.

_It must be the nice one, _Emma thought to herself. _Patterson._

She got up, now that she could see, and began to eat her meal. Just seconds after, the little hole opened and she saw Patterson's face.



"You ok?" he asked and Emma blinked at him. "I'm just wondering because your tray hasn't come out yet."

Emma smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine." She lied.


End file.
